Sunday, October 31, 2010

Fall is my favorite season and as you can maybe guess...I love Halloween. The idea of dressing up as your alter ego or your favorite classic movie monster is just amazing. I know Halloween *tends* to be for kids, but I can't help myself. I just love it. I love scaring tick-or-treaters and chaperons alike (I was a zombie... with a gooey melt-y face, blood and all). Well, off to watch a scary movie and eat leftover Halloween candy...So love Halloween.

Thursday, October 7, 2010

Today I noticed that the leaves are starting to turn and it's getting chilly out. Fall is definitely here...well, after all it is October. What better way to acknowledge it than to bring back our Spiced Pumpkin Seed Brittle? Our harvest-inspired brittle is warmly spiced and is the perfect accompaniment to those golden-yellow and fire-red hues that are outside.

On a side note – As a small company, sometimes it's hard to find spare time to come up with new items for the holiday seasons. Sometimes I wish I had extra hands or more hours in the day to develop new products, but we are working on a Halloween Gift Box. There is a lot of pressure since Halloween is only 24 days away. I promise, we will be adding it to our shop very soon. Keep a look out...

Wednesday, October 6, 2010

I usually find myself being nostalgic about certain ingredients. I think I get that from my mother. Red current and cucumbers definitely takes me back to my childhood. I still have vivid memories of tea time with my great aunt.

I loved going to her house. From the moment you walked into her house, you could smell lovely red currant jams and cookies being made. She was the most perfect dainty lady and she made me feel like a princess. From her hand painted ceramic tea cups to her handmade tea sandwiches, she was lovely.

She always served tea in the living room on a beautiful silver tray. The tray was always adorned with her cucumber and handmade pâté tea sandwiches, red current jam, shortbread cookies, and chamomile tea. We sat up straight and drank tea out of her precious tea cups. Pinkies out and nibbled on tea sandwiches. Of course, my favorite memory was piling the red currant jam on top of the shortbread cookies and gobbling it all up as we giggled with each other. It is the simplest things in life that have the biggest impact.

If she was still alive, I think she would have truly loved this salad. The combination of red currants and cucumbers are just lovely with salmon.

To grill salmon: Wash the salmon fillet and pat dry. Brush both sides with olive oil and sprinkle with thyme, salt and pepper. Grill the salmon for about 5-7 minutes on each side, depending on the thickness or until it turns pale pink.

Remove the salmon fillet from the grill. Allow the fillet to cool on a plate. When cool enough to handle, flake it with a fork.

Dressing: In a small bowl, whisk together the vinegar, honey, salt and pepper until the ingredients are combined. In a slow stream, add the extra virgin olive oil while whisking until the oil and vinegar have emulsify. Or in a jar with a tight fitting lid. Combine all the ingredients and shake well until combined.

Salad: In a large bowl, combine the grilled salmon flakes, cucumber, onions, parsley and red currents. Drizzle with the dressing, gently toss. Transfer to a serving platter and enjoy.

Unless otherwise specified, all pictures on this blog is taken by Shay Paquet {me... yours truly}. Please do not reproduce or use without permission. I'm an email away... please feel free to contact me with any questions, comments or concerns.